Settle For Nothing
by AnimeCat
Summary: The past, present and future co-exist on different levels, and while Duo foolishly risks his life in the battlefield, his parents 14 1/2 years earlier are taking care of their son Damon Kaelen... Read and Review!!
1. Default Chapter Title

AnimeCat: Hullo! Here's an interesting fic inspired as I fell asleep in Geography...God only knows why this would come to me at such an odd moment...  
  
I was going to start a series about what the GW pilot's parents might have gone through, but I changed my mind. I did write this, so I hope you like it! Thanks to all those who voted for Duo's name!! And I got to cheat...I used one of the other choices for his last name...  
  
Okay, this is a Rage Against The Machine songfic. I'm not really a fan, I just think the lyrics of this song rule ^_^. I spliced it and diced it, because it was a pretty long song and this fic might only be a chapter or two.   
  
Disclaimer: I only own Duo's parents. Whoever owns the rest of them is a lucky...well, they're pretty lucky. ^_^  
  
Read and Review!!  
  
@-------  
  
SETTLE FOR NOTHING  
--Rage Against The Machine  
_  
  
{A jail cell is freedom from the pain in my home}  
  
He sits in the darkness, waiting...  
  
Tries to count the minutes but even time slips through his fingers...  
  
So he waits.  
  
He tightens his grip on the controls. Rendevous point was a half hour ago...what the hell was going on?  
  
...His comrades...where had the gone?  
  
Zero-one and zero-four. Numbers but no names.  
  
But of course...they were all nameless soldiers once the battle beings.   
  
Nameless, faceless....capable only of killing.  
  
Capable only of death.  
  
_  
  
{Hatred passed on, passed on and passed on}  
_  
  
"So," Alex asked curiously. "What did you end up naming him?"  
  
Scott Kaelen brushed a strand of his chestnut hair behind his ear and looked at his co-worker. He stood proudly.   
  
"Kara decided on the name Damon...well, sort of."  
  
"Damon?" Alex repeated. "That's cool! ...What do you mean, 'sort of'?"  
  
"Er..." Scott smiled warily, "I actually think she was screaming 'damn!'...but that's what the doctor wrote on his birth certificate, so his name is Damon."  
  
Alex broke into loud, friendly laughter and slapped Scott on the back. "You must be real proud."  
  
"Totally." Scott nodded, thinking of his bright-eyed son. "He's got Kara's eyes. He'll be a prettyboy when he grows up."  
_  
  
{A world full of rage}  
_  
  
Duo looked up to the sky. YES! Heero and Quatre were on their way! He could see Wing tearing through the sky, leaving the sky shimmering in its wake.   
  
"About time!" Duo shouted angrily. "Oz's troops will be here any minute!"  
  
"They're already here, Duo!" Heero shouted over the Comm Link. "They're following us. There are too many, Duo. Go back!!"  
  
NO! His mind screamed. He'd spent way too much time wallowing in the darkness of Deathscythe's cockpit and in half-baked memories of people dying before his eyes. There's no way he's backing down now!!  
  
"No!" He shouted defiantly. "I'll stay!!"  
  
{But it's one that I recognize}  
  
"Duo! Are you crazy??" Quatre screamed. "Alone? You can't!! We can't! Sandrock is low on fuel...I /have/ to go!"  
  
"The Wing is in bad shape, too." Heero added. "We have to leave!"  
  
"Go if you want." Duo said acidly, grinning. "But I /am/ staying."  
  
{Having never seen the color of my father's eyes...}  
  
"Duo..." Heero growled.  
  
"God damnit, if you're gonna leave-- go!! You're wasting your fuel and my time by standing around doing nothing!" Duo shouted. He grinned again. "And if it's as bad as you say, come back for my body later and bury me."  
  
"You won't have one left to bury." Heero said icily. "But it's your choice."  
  
The Wing flew off, but Sandrock remained.   
  
"Quatre..." Duo urged.   
  
"Take care, Duo." Quatre's voice trembled. "Allah, you know I'd stay...I can't." He whispered. Duo shrugged it off.  
  
"Just go, Quatre." He said. Quatre nodded and hit the controls, leaving Duo in the darkness to wait.  
  
The darkness of his past.  
  
The darkness of his soul.  
_  
  
{Yes, I dwell in Hell, but it's a Hell that I can grip}  
_  
  
Her husband came in, slamming the door.   
  
"Scott?" She called. "What's wrong?"   
  
There was a hesitant pause, and Kara came into the living room, holding their son. Scott sat on the couch, staring furiously into space. As she entered, he focused on her.  
  
"It's the God Damned Federation." He hissed. "It's like they don't notice L2 at all!! The colony has zero budget to help itself, the population is helpless and much too big....there are literally thousands of orphans on the streets-- result of their damn battles. But do they help? Do they atone for their sins?" His voice shot angrily, enraged. "No...and they won't until this Colony crashes to Hell."  
  
"Scott," Kara breathed, slowly easing herself into the chair opposite him. Her eyes were wide with her mixed emotions of anger, sorrow, and surprise. "Is it that bad?"  
  
"No, Kara..." Scott continued softly. "It's worse."  
_  
  
{I tried to grip my family, but I slipped}  
_  
  
He saw Oz's troops approaching at top speed.  
  
He swore loudly. Heero and Quatre were right...he'd fought hundreds of suits at the same time before...but nothing like this...  
  
Oz carriers glitteres in the sky like stars. Thousands...each carrier with ten mobile suits at least.   
  
He continued smiling.   
  
Well, if this was the path he'd chosen, he'd walk it.   
  
Fate was fate.  
  
Death was death.   
  
He'd signed his own death certificate the moment he'd taken Deathsycthe and claimed his name.  
  
The God of Death he was.  
  
The God of Death he'd stay...  
  
For now and all time...  
  
{To escape the pain in an existance mundane}  
  
@-------  
  
AnimeCat: I may have the lyrics messed up, but whatever...  
  
If I get a few reviews I'll continue, I just wanted to post this and see how I did. ^_^  
  
Review!!   
  
Ja ne! 


	2. Default Chapter Title

AnimeCat: Yay!! The next chapter of Settle For Nothing!! This is only a three-chapter fic, and I haven't even considered a sequel after this. I hope the ending I give is enough.  
  
I totally screwed up the lyrics....*sighs*  
  
R&R!!!!  
  
@-------  
  
{To escape the pain in an existance mundane}  
  
"We've got to rebel." Scott said. Kara flared with anger, standing up and clutching Damon tightly.   
  
"Rebel?" She spat. "Do you know what position that will place us in?? As traitors!! We'll go to jail for a thousand years and Damon will live with the shame."  
  
"Or he won't live at all, because if they finally give up on this colony, we'll all die."  
  
"Let's just move, Scott!! Honestly! We don't need to be drastic!!"  
  
Scott sighed. "We don't have the money, Kara. And this is my home. My great grandfather was one of the first hundred civilians to live here on L2, before the colony was a rat-infested cesspool of disease and poverty."  
  
Kara shuddered.   
  
"I refuse to abandon L2." He continued. Kara nodded, grinning now. Carried on to her son, years from now, soldiers would die as their killer wore that exact smile.  
  
"Then I'll rebel, too."   
  
Holding Damon, she stepped to Scott and held him close, Damon between them. The heart of their son beat between them. They would always hold this connection...through life, through death. The connection of life through their son...their creation. The bond that would always hold them...  
_  
  
{I gotta 9, a sign, a set and now I gotta name!!}  
_  
  
His scythe tore through the assualting Aries. A scream echoed silently in his brain...  
  
He broke out in sweat and continued to keep one eye on the monitors and one eye on the enemy. Bright light flared, accompanied by intense heat, and Deathscythe's controls trembled in his hands as he took another hit.   
  
*You can't keep this up much longer, can you, old boy?* Duo thought wonderingly. *Just don't give up on me. Just a little longer, Deathscythe, please...*  
_  
  
{Read my writing on the wall}  
_   
  
"If we attack the south side, they won't expect..."  
  
"Scott?" Kara called. Scott looked up from his planning sheets and maps. Alex's forehead furrowed, the other three men sighed.  
  
Alex, being Scott's best friend had immediately agreed to rebel alongside him. Working together, they now had almost 300 rebels. They were everywhere... He, Alex, and three other held the most important positions in the organization, named after Scott's son.  
  
The Damon K Organization.   
  
"Later, Kara. I'm busy."  
  
"You swore you'd never let Damon K get in the way with our life, Scott." Kara said in a dangerous voice. Scott sighed.   
  
"Sorry, guys. Family first." Scott said, smiling.   
  
"This is important, Scott. Don't take too long." Alex warned coldly.  
  
*He takes this a whole lot more serious than I...*  
  
"Yes, Kara?" He asked, coming into the living room. Damon was watching TV, his indigo eyes flitting with excitment. He was almost four.   
  
"When you leave tonight, I'm going with you." She said.  
  
"Kara..." Scott faltered. "You know how I feel about taking you with me..."  
  
"Scott, I'm part of this rebellion, too. You have to include me at /some/ point."  
  
"I know....but what if something happens? Damon...someone will need to take care of him..."  
  
"Nothing will happen..." She breathed, embracing her husband lovingly. "I promise..."  
_  
  
{No one is here to catch me when I fall}  
_  
  
"Why did you bring your damn family??" Alex shrieked. Scott sighed. It was plain crazy, bringing Damon...  
  
"Never mind." Scott said harshly. "Kara isn't coming inside, she's staying out here. Lets get this over with and it will be like they never came."   
  
Alex twitched. "Ok...let's hurry."  
  
Kara watched from the distance of a few hundred feet as the small group of men broke into the military building. She held her son and tousled his chestnut hair.   
  
"Mommy...where's Daddy goin to?" He asked quietly.   
  
"He's setting us free..." She whispered into his ear, feeling all happiness well within her. "Daddy is part of something that will change the world..."  
  
"What's that?" Damon continued.  
  
"He's part of Damon K, sweetie. He's going to secure a wonderful life for you, my love."   
  
Damon fell asleep in her arms and she buried her face in his neck, wishing she could hold on to this age forever.  
  
That's when the building exploded.   
  
{Death is on my side...Suicide!}  
  
@-------  
  
AnimeCat: One more chapter, but I might cut it in half and make it two chapters...it all depends.   
  
Whatcha think?? Review!! Please!!  
  
Ja ne! 


	3. Default Chapter Title

AnimeCat: Ok, people, here's chapter 3...and there will still be 2 more chapters!! YAY!! This one basically focuses on Scott and Kara, and Duo in the end. And-- I don't know what Solo looks like, no one kill me about it..I don't know how he meets Duo or anything, so I made up their meeting and what he looks like. From what I've heard...you may need some tissues later on... =(   
  
Read and Review!   
  
@-------  
  
{A jail cell is freedom from the pain in my home}  
  
Scott's whole world vanished before his eyes. He saw Kara...he saw Damon...he saw the fire that had come from no where and enveloped his best friend as if from the very depths of hell.   
  
But looking down at his bruised and bloody body, he was amazed to find that other than an injury to the head and some slices and dices on his body, he was virtually unhurt.  
  
{Hatred passed on, passed on and passed on}  
  
He stood slowly, but sank back down to his knees, uttering a low, mourning wail. Alex was dead...and his friends...  
  
He straightened. "Damon...Kara..." He choked. Were they...could they be...dead? He had to find them, and they had to get the hell away from here before they were arrested and executed!!  
  
With a hoarse cough, he breathed deep and jumped up, setting off on a dead run.   
_  
  
{A world of violent rage}  
_  
  
"Damon..." Kara whispered hoarsely, tears already streaming down her face. Her grip on his body involuntarily tightened.  
  
"Momma?" He whispered. "You're hurtin me..."  
  
She loosened her grip.   
  
Her mind raced furiously. Protect Damon...get the hell out of here... Was a constant reminder. Scott...oh God...  
  
"Damon?" She said again. She could hear sirens going off...undoubtedly mobile suits were on their way. "Run, baby. Don't stop, don't turn back."  
  
"Momma?" Damon's lower lip quivered.  
  
"Run for me, Honey! Damon-- go, now!!" She said urgently, seeing the familiar shape of a Leo emerge from one of the hangars. Why wouldn't she go with Damon?? I'm waiting for Scott!!  
  
{But it's one that I can recognize}  
  
Damon scampered away, and she prayed for him... She'd hold up anything and everything that thought they could touch a hair on her son's head while she stood his guardian...living or dead... She shuddered at the thought.   
  
Another shape took place a few dozen yards from her. She drew in her breath, praying, hoping...  
  
"Kara!!" The figure screamed. She almost fainted with relief.  
  
{Having never seen the color of my father's eyes}  
  
There was a loud cracking, a gunshot sound. In her mind, she saw a white flash, blinding her with its purity.   
  
She remembered a spray of blood play in front of her eyes...and then the light vanished, taking her with it...  
_  
  
{Yes, I dwell in hell, but it's a hell that I can grip}  
  
-  
  
Kara staggered forward a few steps, her rich indigo eyes blank...devoid of light and life.   
  
She held her hand to her chest, a large red stain forming below her grip.  
  
Scott dimly heard a scream come from somewhere...and his throat was desperately raw. Kara moaned softly, her eyes fluttering open and shut.  
  
"Stop where you are, dammit!!" Someone screamed from behind him. "I'll fire again!"  
  
Scott didn't listen..he had to get to Kara! He ran again, barely feeling the bullet as it grazed his shoulder, not hearing the sound of the one whizzing past his ear. Distantly, he felt a sharp pain on his head, but he continued running. Ribbons of bright red flecked his face and chest...his own, he realized.  
  
He reached Kara, and she fell into his arms. Her wine colored hair spilled onto his shoulder, looking like the blood splashed on her chest.  
  
"Kara..." He breathed. Her chest on his, the liquid seeping from the gaping wound over her heart spread on his chest as if it had been he who had taken the bullet. He could hear and feel her rattling breath. "I'm so sorry, Kara..."  
  
"I'll protect Damon...like I said I would..." She managed, a trickle of blood escaping her mouth and sliding down her chin. She smiled faintly. "I love you, Scott..."  
  
{I tried to grip my family}  
  
She coughed...and the rattling adruptly stopped.  
  
"I love you, too, Kara..." Scot said passionately, holding his wife tightly in his arms. "/We'll/ protect Damon...I'll always stay with you..."  
  
{But I slipped}  
  
From behind him, he heard the voice of Kara's killer talking harshly.  
  
"Go to hell, you damn rebels."  
  
Click.  
  
That's all he heard before he joined Kara again...this time for eternity...  
_  
  
{To escape from the pain in an existence mundane}  
_  
  
Shivering on a street corner, Damon kept his knees against his chest and he blew warm air to his hands.   
  
"Hey, kid, what are you doing?" Someone asked. Damon looked up to see a fair haired boy some years older than him staring down at him with hazel eyes open wide. The boy looked in the same condition, grubby and scruffy. The boy had a torn pair of shorts and shirt, and mismatched shoes.   
  
"I dun know..." Damon slightly slurred, wiping his eyes from his tears he'd been shedding all day.  
  
"What are you crying for?" The boy asked.   
  
"I'm alone..." He tried. The boy broke a smile.   
  
"I was all alone a couple years ago...I've got friends now. Where are your parents?"  
  
Damon let out a small, choked sob. Behind the boy, someone walked by holding a newpaper that read: RINGLEADERS OF DAMON K KILLED BY FEDERATION SOLDIER.  
  
"They're dead." He whispered, his mind filled with the memory of his mistake of turning around and looking at Scott and Kara. He'd gasped as the gun fired, and hundreds of red beads shot into the air, then sprinkling on the ground. Still holding his wife, Scott Kaelen slumped over in the grass.  
  
"Oh." The boy said softly. "My name is Solo. Yours?"  
  
Damon shuddered. Somewhere deep inside, a soul wise beyond Damone's age coldy realized, *Damon Kaelen is dead. You will no longer call yourself that*  
  
"I don't have one anymore." He said bitterly. Solo shrugged, and helped the now nameless boy to his feet.   
  
"Come with me, I started up my own little gang of kids like you and me. You can join us."  
  
He nodded in agreement. Solo eyed him thoughtfully. They started walking. "Now to name ya, Kid."   
_  
  
{I gotta 9, a sign, a set and now I gotta name}  
_  
  
Duo took another hit, and Deathscythe went sprawling backwards. He desperately tried to get Deathscythe back up, but all he succeeded in doing was getting the suit into a propped up position.  
  
As Duo looked up, his eyes widened at the sight of the small beam cannon aimed directly at him.  
  
{Read my writing on the wall}  
  
"Damn..." He managed, gritting his teeth. *Thanks, Deathscythe...* He thought quickly, *I guess the captain goes down with the ship, after all..*  
  
{No one's here to catch me when I fall}  
  
The beam cannon aimed at his face began to glow with sickening heat. Duo shut his eyes and allowed the darkness to take him back...  
  
{Caught between my culture and the system.... Genocide!}  
  
@-------  



	4. Default Chapter Title

Settle For Nothing!

Chapter 4

AnimeCat: One more chapter….why isn't this fic getting reviews?? I'm getting like 3 per chapter!! No one likes angst or something? Yeah…_right_….

Please review? This is damaging….

@------

{Caught between my culture and the system....genocide!}

__

"Don't give up!! Please!" The voice rang out. 

__

Go away, he responded mentally. _I've been Death for too long...let me have some peace, ok?_

"Damon!!! I won't let you!!! You can't give up when you've come so far!!"

Duo's eyes shot open. Who the hell was Damon?? 

He froze. 

He was surrounded by darkness. No light, no sound. Dead silence. Dead…that's exactly what it was…..

Moments seemed like hours in this dark…

But then….

A pale light developed from the darkness, growing brighter within minutes. The intensity of the light soon had him squinting. "What the…?" He breathed. A figure took shape in the center of the light, a feminine shape. He blinked, and he could see the woman perfectly when he opened his eyes again. She wasn't too tall, hardly taller than he, bright wine-colored hair, and living indigo eyes. 

__

Living? He scoffed at his own description of the lady. _But they are…_ Duo could find no better word for her eyes, which were bright and seemed to be the very essence of her image. She was so sad…so horribly sad….

{Read my writing on the wall}

"Damon…" She begged. "Don't give up…please. I called you here…to my place… As long as you're with me, you're safe…but you can't stay very long…"

Duo blinked at her. He rubbed his eyes. "I am dreaming…." He pinched his arm. "This is a freaky dream…and in ten seconds I'll wake up in my bed…" He shut his eyes and waited. He opened them a second later back to her face. 

"Damon…"

"Who are you??" Duo screamed at her. "What's going on?? Aren't I supposed to be on the First Class Flight to Hell right about now? Why are you calling me Damon??"

She looked hurt. "Because it's your name…." She said softly. "Please, I don't have time to explain…just trust me!"

Duo grunted. "Yeah…this is common…I'll just trust the floating ghost-thing…" 

The woman looked ticked. "Well…now I know where my attitude went. Never mind…ughhh…" she groaned. "Damon, you have one last chance! My name is Kara Kaelen, I'm your mother!"

Duo blinked again. Hell, if this was a dream he might as well have a little fun.

"Yeah, sure you are…so, where's Daddy Darth?" 

Her gaze darkened. "I died for you, Damon Kaelen. You'd better pay attention to what I have to say." She said inertly. 

Her tone stung, and this time he remained silent. 

"Me and your father, Scott Kaelen…Damon, honey, we wanted everything for you! We rebelled against L2 so that you'd have a future! We died for that and for you. So that you could live…and become something greater. We've been protecting you ever since! All for the big picture, all for _your_ future and those you wish to protect!"

"You…?" Duo asked mildly. 

Deathscythe…how it never managed to self-destruct properly, especially when he was anywhere near it… The close calls on the battle field… The Maxwell Massacre… Sister Helen, Father Maxwell….. The plague….Solo……..

She nodded. "We can't do any more for you…this is the last time we can help you, Damon! So Scott and I were given one final chance to protect you, and give you something to comfort you and insure your faith!"

Duo snarled. "What faith? What God? What about you? I've lost everyone. Apparently someone up there doesn't like me all that much anyway, 'cause I had one screwed up childhood."

Kara looked hurt, but her forehead furrowed.

{No-one's here to catch me when I fall}

"Never…" She hissed, "…never doubt God, Damon. Not to my face. Not after everything He's done for me. He saved my soul, and I've spent years praying for yours. Hoping that you were fighting for the greater good, and not some inner desire for death. Do you hear me, Damon Kaelen, Duo Maxwell?"

Duo sighed. _This can't be real!! It CAN'T be!!_

"Why can't it be? You're a Gundam pilot, aren't you supposed to expect the unexpected?" She grinned, and Duo knew that expression very well…

"I…I hear you…." Duo brought his voice down a few octaves. 

{If ignorance is bliss, then knock the smile off my face}

"I can protect you one last time, Duo…but you have to help me." Kara continued, losing her razor edge.

"Help you how?" 

"I asked God for your protection, and Scott wants you to remember things…not about our deaths, because we know that you saw it when we died. " Her face became child-like. "I could never wish for my son to see my death…it wasn't pretty, Damon. But you'll remember other things…like everything we accomplished…everything…even our organization….Damon K…"

"What do I have to do?" Duo immediately asked. Kara smiled again, her wicked grin…but it was beautiful. 

"You have to pray with me, Damon. From the heart. You have to reconcile with our Lord to see the gifts Scott and I have made for you."

"Um…where is he, anyway? My dad, I mean…." Duo said uneasily. 

Kara smiled sadly. "He wanted to see you so badly, Damon…but he had to stay where he was to keep the connection. You to me, me to him, and he to God. Pray with me now…" She looked straight into Duo's eyes.

{Yeah!}

"I…I…I can't!" Duo stammered. 

"Why not??" Kara demanded. 

Duo hung his head down low. "I don't have that right….let me die, 'Mom'. I just want some peace, ok?? Is that too much to ask for? I don't want to pray, I don't want memories of a life I can't have. I can't do it…"

Silence hung in the air like an guillotine ready to fall. Duo wondered what Kara could possibly be doing if she wasn't angry, just waiting for him to make another move?

He looked up.

Kara was crying. 

Not the kind of crying you would see in a movie…not hysteria or anything of the sort. She crossed her arms and tightened her grip till her knuckles were white. She looked far from pitiful…she looked beautiful…as an angel should, Duo supposed. Silvery tears streaked from her eyes slowly, the life in her eyes gone. 

One of her tears hit the center of her chest…over her heart….

Instead of a darkened spot of moisture, it left a dark red stain on her shirt, which Duo now realized was awfully familiar…

The red stain grew with every drop. Her hands dropped from their position and she placed them tightly over her heart.

"What's happening to you??" Duo shrieked. She looked at him, her indigo eyes trembling and the tears still sliding from her face, and she smiled. 

She smiled, despite obvious pain. 

"I suppose…" She stammered, "I suppose I'm about to die…_again_." She brought one of her hands up and watched blood drip from her fingers. "I don't know what's happening…." She sighed, her voice filled with wonder. "I failed in protecting you…and I swore that I would…"

"No!!!" Duo screamed. He was NOT, _not_ about to make Kara suffer again!! "I'll pray!!! I swear it, and I'll pray with you and accept it all!!!"

{If we don't take action now}

Kara sighed, "Please…Damon…not just for me…I've been through this before…" She begged. 

Duo shook his head. "For me!! I don't have to go to Hell, and I sure don't want to!!!" 

She tried to smile, but cried out in pain. "It…it wasn't this bad….last time………" She breathed, keeling over and clutching her chest. 

Duo put his hands together in prayer frantically. He shut his eyes. _Not for her…it won't work if I pray for Kara….it has to be for me…._

"Out father…." He started shakily…damn, it had been so long since he'd done this!!

The first memory hit him like a ton of bricks. 

__

"....there are literally thousands of orphans on the streets-- result of their damn battles. But do they help? Do they atone for their sins?"

His head reeled backwards, the images coming back…the pain…the fear…..

"Who art…in….heaven…" Kara gasped. 

__

"You swore you'd never let Damon K get in the way with our life, Scott." 

"Hallowed…be….thy…name…." Duo fought himself, _Don't think about their deaths! If you do you're remember them!!! _

{We settle for nothing later}

__

"I know....but what if something happens? Damon...someone will need to take care of him..."

"Thy…" Kara screamed in agony again. Duo clenched his eyes shut…forcing himself not to look at her…by this time she'd be covered in blood…. "Kingdom come…._thy will be done…_"

__

"Mommy...where's Daddy goin to?"

"He's setting us free..."

"As on earth as it is on heaven!!" Duo finished, almost screaming. His eyes flared open, and Kara stood straight….a white aura surrounding her. 

Ethereal….eternal….his angel, his guardian angel…

{Settle for nothing now}

No blood, no pain….just Kara as an essence, rather than form. She was nothing and everything, light and darkness, the angel with a devil's smile. 

__

"You'll have your peace, Damon….I promise you…" She was crying again as she faded…

The darkness shattered, and Duo once again found himself facing the beam cannon. 

Duo kept his eyes open. 

This wasn't the time for the darkness of his past.

It was the time for the future, and the light that his new knowledge had given him. 

There was a flare of hot light…

{And we'll settle for nothing later}

@-------

AnimeCat: Review, pleeeeeease???????????????


	5. Default Chapter Title

Settle For Nothing

AnimeCat: I know I messed up the prayer…but I didn't exactly want "Give us this day our daily bread" in there…did I? ^_~

@-------

{If we don't take action now}

A slow beeping slowly resounded in his ears. He didn't remember shutting his eyes in the first place but he opened them now.

His eyes at first met with pure white. His first thought was that he'd somehow made it to heaven. Second, heaven would never make that annoying beep.

"What the hell…?" He muttered. 

"Looks like you have a body left, after all." Someone mused coldly. Duo turned his head and saw Heero sitting down a few feet from him, and the rest of the world slowly came into picture. 

"Heero…?" He breathed slowly. "I'm not dead?"

"One would think so…after what you've been through."

__

How would he know that? Duo thought. "You haven't any idea…" Duo groaned and lay back on his pillow. "Uh…Heero…mind filling me in on what the hell has happened in the last day?" 

Heero grunted, and Duo accepted this as a Yes. 

"Quatre wouldn't shut up about me leaving you behind when I had more fuel than he." 

"You came back cause Quatre asked you to?" 

Heero said nothing for a moment. 

"I guess I had a few internal conflicts on leaving you behind…you are a fellow Gundam pilot, after all."

"Well put, Heero." Duo said sarcastically. "Can't you talk like an actual human once in a while? You're not the frikken super computer from hell, stop acting like it."

{We'll settle for nothing later}

Duo could almost hear Heero grin.

"Fine then. Quatre didn't want you dead and neither did I." Heero rephrased carefully. "Happy?"

"Ecstatic." Duo said shortly, staring up at his ceiling. _Was it all a dream? Some freaky chemical overflow? _

"What are you thinking?" Heero broke his reverie. 

"Why does it matter?" Duo asked coldly, still bewildered and on his last nerve. 

"Because it's quieter than a damn tomb in here and when you're not running your stupid mouth, something must be up." Heero said this all totally calmly, and Duo burst out in laughter. 

"I'm thinking about What If."

"Explain." 

"What if we weren't what we are…had names and all that. Families…" Duo admitted softly.

"Hn," Heero grunted, "That's a waste of time and you know it."

Duo moved his head a little and looked at Heero. "You've never thought of it? Not once?"

"I told you, it's a waste of time." Heero said impatiently. 

"Did you ever have anything close to a family?"

Heero eyed him coldly. "Yes," he said lowly, "once…I guess as close to one as I'd get." 

"Really?" 

Heero nodded. "A father figure, though I'd hardly call him that. Before Dr. J. You?"

Duo sighed. "Just at the Maxwell Church, and my friend Solo, I guess…"

__

And apparently this Kara and Scott….she said I'd be able to remember…why can't I?? Duo thought grimly.

{We settle for nothing now}

__

Kara wanted my protection…that had to be Heero! That means it worked, but what about Scott wanting my memories… Then he got angry. _Why am I doing this to myself?? It was a dream. Heero came because he and Quatre didn't want me to die. _

Well…what are you trying to remember?

Anything! 

Well think about it…you were four. How much could you possibly remember from that age? 

Both sides of his conscious raged out against him until he was breaking out in sweat.

Heero got up from his chair. "Should I call the nurse?" 

"No," Duo said quietly, "I'll be okay…sit down." 

Heero surveyed him for a moment before nodding and sitting back down. 

"Why are you staying in here?" Duo asked. 

Heero shrugged. "Your injuries are serious…I thought it was best. Until the doctor comes back with your result analysis I'm staying here."

Duo blinked and shrugged.

__

You have your protection… A voice echoed. _Are you ready for your memory?_

{And we'll settle for nothing later}

Duo shut his eyes…and he felt a strange warmth fill his body. In his minds' eye, he could see the familiar indigo violet of Kara's eyes. The soft blood red of her hair….

Swirled together with a mix of other colors, that of Scott's, he saw other things. Occasionally someone smiling…he could hear laughter…the feeling of being hugged and kissed by his parents could actually be felt on his skin. 

But was this enough?

{If we don't take action now}

__

Is that it? He scoffed. _That's nothing. _

It's everything…The voice argued. 

__

How is it everything?!

You have That Feeling, now. You know it. The feeling every child has… Slowly…other things will come. 

I want it now!! Duo raged. _I'm sick of being alone!! Everything I ever get, every person I've ever known always leaves me in the end. They were the first. _

You were never alone. They've been watching you, taking care of you…making sure you_ survived, that's all they could give you._

They should have let me die when it comes to that, Duo thought bitterly.

__

You're not alone anymore…you have friends now. They won't be taken from you…not this time.

{We settle for nothing later}

Duo looked back over to Heero again, who continued to watch him with a stoic face, his eyes not leaving Duo for a moment. Duo looked away. That was kinda creepy…

__

Soon, Duo. Soon you'll remember other things, and you'll take comfort in them. Accept these for now. 

Again the feeling of Kara hugging him, her hair tickling his cheek came over him and he sighed. 

{We'll settle for nothing now}

Duo gently stroked his braid. His hair was from his father, his eyes from his mother… His attitude….apparently from his mother.

He smirked. He again turned to Heero.

"Not even gonna ask me why I did it?" He asked. 

Heero blinked. "It doesn't matter. You acted on your emotions, which I would do, myself. You wanted to fight, therefore you fought." 

Duo was silent for another moment or two. "Heero…" He started again.

"What is it?" Heero asked flatly. 

"Have you ever heard of Damon K?" Duo asked, shutting his eyes. 

"A few times. They were a small rebel organization against the Federation. Unfortunately they didn't hold out and eventually the Federation erased the memory of Damon K from everyone. You won't even find it in history books anymore." 

"You know how it happened?" 

Heero regarded him for a moment. "The leaders were assassinated a few years into the rebellion. They might have done it, too. Managed to overthrow the grip the Federation had on L2…but nothing came of it." 

Duo grinned coldly. "Well then," He said under his breath, "this is for you, Mom. I'll finish what you couldn't.

"I swear."

{And we'll settle for nothing later}

@-------

~Owari

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